Safety harness



I. E. PRUSAN SAFETY HARNESS May 4, 1954 Filed May 21, 1953 IIT -lllilh INVENTOR.

IR. V| NG E. PRU SAN Fatented May 4, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SAFETY HARNESS Irving E. Prusan, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application May 21, 1953, Serial No. 356,386

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to safety harnesses for children which will restrain the unlimited movement of the wearer. a

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved harness which in normal use cannot be removed or shaken loose by the wearer.

It is another object of this invention to provide a readily adjustable harness of simplified construction which is economical to manufacture.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a comfortable safety harness which can be adjusted and thereafter taken on and off easily without altering the adjustment.

A preferred embodiment of the safety harness of this invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein,

Figure 1 is a perspective of the improved harness viewed from the front;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary cross-section on line 2-20]? Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-section along line 53 of Figure 1.

More specifically, the harness comprises an adjustable belt 50 which girdles the Waist of the child. Slidably mounted thereon are loops 5| which carry buckles 52. The front ends of shoulder straps 53 and 54 are adapted to engage these buckles thereby adjusting the effective length of the straps. Shoulder strap 53 extends from its buckle up along the chest and down along the back of the wearer where it is bent under and around one end of the belt 50, and is secured thereto by rivets 55. Shoulder strap 54 extends from the other buckle up the chest and down the back of the child and is bent under and around clasp 55, being secured thereto by rivets 51.

The belt, secured at the back to one shoulder strap by rivets 55, passes around the front of the child and through the two vertical slits in clasp 58. It continues through a vertical slit in clasp 56 (which is secured to the other shoulder strap), passes around the center post of clasp 58 and is secured upon itself by rivet 59. The effective length of the belt can thereby be adjusted readily by threading the belt in either direction through the slots in clasp 58.

Shoulder straps 53 and 54 are attached to each other by means of slide fastener 60 and the entire harness may be put on and taken 01f without affecting the adjustment and Without discomfort to the wearer since it does not pass over the head.

As an additional safeguard to prevent the shoulder straps from moving too far apart and permitting the wearer to slip free of the harness, strap 6| passes horizontally across the chest and is mounted slidably on shoulder straps 53 and 5t. Specifically, the ends of strap Bi-are bent around the shoulder straps forming loops and these ends are secured to the cross-piece of the strap by rivets 62.

semicircular loops 63 are slidably mounted on the belt 563, generally near the sides of the wearer. Spring hooks 64 hook onto loops 63 and are in turn engaged by circular loops 65. The perpendicular protrusion from loop 65 engages semicircular ring 66. Strap 6'! passes through ring 56 and around the center post of buckle 65 and is secured upon itself by rivet 69. The other end of strap 67 is adapted to engage buckle 68 and form a loop. I

Figure 2 illustrates an enlarged cross-sectional view of the means for securing shoulder strap E i at the back, like numerals having reference to the same part.

Figure 3 illustrates the construction of the belt, which is similar to the construction of the other parts coming in contact with the body of the wearer, viz., the shoulder straps and the horizontal strap. Specifically, the body of the belt 55 is composed of a strip of leather 10. To this strip on its underside there is glued a protruding strip of soft, felt-like backing serrated along its edges II. This backing serves the dual function of eliminating chafing while the notched edges tend to limit the movement of loops 5| and 63, clasp 58, and horizontal strap 6!. To assure that this backing will not separate from the body ll, they are sewn together along each edge 12.

In operation, the slide fastener is opened and the childs arms inserted through the shoulder straps. The slide fastener is closed and the belt 50 and shoulder straps 53 and 54 are adjusted to the proper size. The adult may use either strap 67 or a leash or may secure both such straps to suitable holders on the sides of a crib, carriage or other device.

The belt and straps may be made of leather, plastic, cotton webbing, and other materials of like strength. To provide comfort these may be lined with wool, felt, fieeced cotton and the like. The buckles, clasps, rings, and hooks are preferably made from metals but other materials of like properties may be similarly employed. In place of rivets other securing means such as stitching can be utilized with similar effectiveness. A series of hooks and eyes or mutually engaging hooks can be substituted for the slide fastener without affecting operation of the invention.

Safety harnesses are relatively inexpensive and even small savings represent substantial decreases percentagewise in the cost of manufacturing. Since fewer pieces are involved in this device than in prior art devices for similar purposes the costs of cutting and assembling are diminished. The belt being or" one piece with but a single adjustment, less r-material is used with no decrease in adjustability or utility. The straps are of minimum length consonant with their general use on children of all sizes. These savings result in a less expensive device-w ich is simpler to operate but which nonetheless has all the advantages of devices considerably-more complex.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the novel safety harness of this invention is one in which the structurercomprises a pair of shoulder-straps, a .belt,. securedrat.one end to :theiback ofione ofthose shouldenstraps, and forming a loop, whichloop ismengagedjby:an appropriate remember. associated with vtheback of the other 1 of the shoulder straps, :thebelt having'iappro- --.priate means that. connectssthe-free end oi the loop of the belt thereby to provide for. changing -.-ithelength of the belt, the beltalsocarrying meanssior adjustably securing K the front of the shoulder straps, and the-backs of the shoulder -strapshaving :means ifor interengagement v to 4:tfastennthezharnessiabout the body of. the wearer.

Itzwill' be understood that the foregoingde- -scription of the invention and the embodiments s-n-setforth are merely: illustrative of the principles thereof, and; accordingly,-that the-appended claims are to be construed as defining the invenxtiOIl within the full spiritand scope thereof.

I claim: 1'. Asafety harness comprising a' pair ofshoulder straps, a single piece belt secured at "one -.end to the back of eone of said shoulder straps and the other endiorming a'loop, :a pierced projection lhaving a' closed "slot extending from the shoulden'straps, a single piece belt secured at one end to the back of one of said shoulder straps, the other end of the belt forming a loop, a looped member secured to the back of the other of said shoulder straps, the said looped end ot theibelvbeing slidably extended through said looped membenmeans for adjustably connecting the free end of said loop to the belt in order to awar'yi: the effective length of the belt, said belt carrying a pair of buckle-bearing slidable loops tadapted to engage the front ends of said shoulder s-trapa and a pairof slidable loops adapted to be hooked to range limiting'elements, a-hor-izon- 1- tal strap--slidablymounted at its 1 ends on: each shoulder-strap, andfastener means apart thereof carried at vthe back of each shoulderstrap.

3; A safetyharness-comprising asingle piece wbelt of adjustable length, apair of shoulder straps extending from the backofith'eharness to the frontthereofi-one end oiwthe belt beingfastened to the back ofone ofr-the-shoulder straps-and the 'other end of the-belt-forming a loop adjustable on the back of theha-rness, and a member secured to the back of the other of said-shoulder straps and slidablyengaging said belt-loop.

References Gitedinthe file of=this patent UNITED STATESJPATENTS Number Name Date 1,288,170 Pick -Dec. 17, 1918 "1,816,262 -Ritter July 28, 1931 2,132,556 Bl'ackshaw. Oct. 11', 1938 2,233,397 Bloom Mar. 4, 1941 2,563,766 "'Weinstein et al. Aug. 7;1951 

